Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-02-04
DEATH FROM FUEL GAS
Why the Troy Company's Works
are Closed.
Alarming Results OF Leaks I'm
the Mains-PrOstratiO ana
Deaths without Appar-
ent Cause.
~ v rimes January e1. 1ss7. /


persons who, without knowing It. were
subjected TO its deadly influence.
The Troy Fuel Gas Company, of which
Alvin Garrett. New YORK, Is President
aud treasurer, last spring purchased the
plsnt of the dcfunct Troy Steam Heating
Company aud converted 1t into apparatus
for manufacturing and distributing fuel
gas by the method of manufacture invented
by Prof T. G. Lowe, of Norrlstown, Penn
With this apparatus the company began,
early In the summer, to supply customers
with fuel gas, distributed largely through
the old steam heating msins. Th> largest
customers were the laundries, with which
the city abounds, but as the season al
vanced. and thegreater convenience OF this
kind OF fuel was observed, itwas introduced
into large number of dwellings; into hotel
kitchens and restaurants; families usad it
for cooking and for heating. For the latter
purpose II was burned in the ordinary coal
CRATES. by filling the latter with broken
dated the heat, or in handsomely de.
signed apparatus that could be moved
about. There was neithe smoke nor smell
aud, except where heavy heat was re-
quired. as in laundries, no pipe nor Chin
ney was really needed, combustion being
substantially perfect. This fuel WAS fur
nished at so cents q thousand feet. l. gave
general satisfaction Mt that price, for al
though the quantity used made IL little
niore expensive tn in coa', toe greater con-
venience, freedom from dust and ashes,
and the posi- BILE economy in use established
1t as favorite even with people who do
not indulge in Injuries. The company had
only ten-thousand-feet holder, which,
early proved tpo small for the growing bus
fuess, aud In September the work of con.
structing two-thousand.feet holder was
begun.
Tha past tense has been used thus far be-
cause the Troy Fuel Gas Wo ks are now
closed. The fires are out, and the apparatus
for burning the gas, a large part OF which
h0l tn rfrxa
gathered in, and there is an end of the bust
ness fer the present. The stoppage of the
works was brought about by tragic
cause. Late in the fall two or three cases
OF prostratton from breathing this gas oc-
CURED in laundries and other places. In
each c1se IL was ascertained that the oper.
attves had carelessly left the stops partly
open. and this misfortune was properly
attributed to their own negligence. But
on January the danger to life from this
odorless gas appeared from an unexpected
and statting source. About 10 O'Clock in
the morning the proprietors and employees
TO the number of twelve in four stores,
situated about 500 yards from the gas
works, which are on the main street, were
prostratei IN strange way, and to them
from an unscconntable cause The stores
were not all adjacent, and none OF them
used the fuel sas. One of the proprietors of
a paper store, George w. Van AIstyne, feel
ing sudden dizziness and pauses, left the
store and got into passing horse car. On
feet of the astonished passengers. He was
care1 10. as best he could be, and he soon
revived SO as to be able to sit up. After he
isn.n isis the ,e,,t store ore an employe. who was
store to get some medicine st drug
store near by. Meantime another of the
Proprietors, William L. Van Alstyne, while
talking e to g. customer. suddenly Put his
cused for moment. as he felt dizzy and
faint, started for his desk. AS he reached
It he fell prone and helpless upon the floor.
pny sician was called. who happened to
IN the esson who were known to have been
suffering from fuel gas. Suspecting the
presence Of this gas in the store, although
1 ne was told II was not used there. he or
the store boy TO the second story to open the
windows. The colored porter of the sore
was then found In helpless condition at
the top of the cellar stairs, and the store
soon after found on the floor stiff as poker
and nearly dead. He had retained strength
and consciousness only long enough to get
have fallen. While these cases sV were re being %Ss
attended TO in the paper store. discovery
was made thnt six or eight persons in the
neighboring. stores referred to were under
goiug similar though not so severe an ex-
perience. In all fully twelve men and boys
who went to their work in good health were
stricken down and, with one or two ex
ceptions. were rendered incapable Of going.
on for that day. The common experience
was that of chills, dizziness, headache, ,nau.
sea and pain in the eyes. The store boy re
ferrsd was brought TO life only after
good deal Of manipulation. When con-
sciousness returned he had violent attack
OF vomiting. The cause OF these cases of
sickness was traced to fuel gas which, es.
Gaping from break in the main in front of
the stores, had found Its wsy into them Ell
ther through the ground or by way of the
m fap
turers conceded the correctness OF this the
ory. The break In the main was found and
repaired, and the distribution of gas was
continued as II nothing had happened.
Those who were using 1t were wal ned by
their friends to give it up. but they were so
we'll pleased with this new fuel at the price
they were paying for it that they kept it
Last Sunday night. however. fuel gas re-
ceived a setback from which 1t will not re-
cover in Troy until the cause Of the disas-
ter is provided against. On both sides of
Me works there are stores and restaurants
over whicn, in the second stories, people
live. About o'clock serving girl i'd
restaurant was taken suddenly i'll. feeling
dizzy. faint and sick at the stomach. She
went out into the air and then fell in d cad
faint. Presently q lite girl as stricken
in like manner. While caring for the
child her father was stricken down. Next
the proprietor Of the restaurant, c. G. Howe
was prosrated, and when an attendant
went to him he said: "I think l must be
dying" A physician had meanwhile been
cslled, and when he arrived he found about
dozen patients In the rooms over the res
taurant, which was also boarding house.
The windows Were thrown open at once by
one OF The afflicted people revived. A po-
lice officer. accompanied by an cmploye OF
the gssworks, then went In pursuit of other
possible victims. There was no one al home
In the first house they entered. At the sec
Ond house they Received no reply to their
ring. but they saw light burning in the
and on knocking no response was given.
The officer then broke in the door which
opened into the kitchen. woman was
seen sitting in chair by the stove appar-
was inclined slightly. and there was moth
ing to suggest rain or distress before she
died. Continuing their search the men
found younger womsn lying on the sitting
ting upright on lounge was also found.
The woman on the floor had a slop bucket
by her side, her clothes were disarranged,
and other evidence of q struggle and Of
dentIy fallen into his fatal sleep as quietly
as the woman in the kitchen These
ghastly discoveries were followed by gen.
eral alarm of the neighboshood and the
the works Ten or twelve people were res;
cued from a near approach to death,
One man, Albert Ingram, was reused be-
fore the rescuing party arrived at his ap'
p8rtmentS Dy tHc udIkiuS VI MS uo5. ne
was SO sick and dizzy when he got
TO the air that he could hardly stand
on his feet. The dog itself becoming sick.
doubled itself up in corner and It's legs
became stiff. James Ingram, father of Al
bort, tn, foregoing, was revived from a
deep stupor just in time to save his life.
He said when he recovered consciousness
that he recollected falling asleep and of ex-
perIencing pleasant sensations dreaming.
lie seems 10 have had fuel gas on his mind
for he dreamed the com pany's works were
on steamboat on the Hudson river in the
rear OF the real gas works. One of the gas
makers was explaining to him the process
of manufac uring the fuel, and he was de-
lighted with the convenience aud inexpeD-
all the time that he was breathing the fatal
gas, but was unable to get away from its in